Small(ish) lottery win - Do I keep it since they didn’t pay?

[swimmingforCB]

We’ve had a family syndicate going for 6 months or so now. Few £10 wins etc but nothing big.

For the past 2 weeks, nobody has bothered paying in. They kept saying they’d do it next week, and then next week came and they said they’d do it that week. But everyone forgot again!

I won on Tuesday. Nothing OTT but a sizeable sum

If I keep it to myself, it’ll change my life. If I share it between the 4 of us, it’ll pay for a fancy holiday and that’s it.

What do I do? 😬

This place is an absolute eye opener to the sheer greed and selfishness of the middle classes. And goes some way to explaining the state of the UK at the moment.

Share the money OP, it’s a real dick move not to.

I’m a carer who gets a total of £307 a month carer’s allowance. Middle class my arse

How it works is, whoever’s turn it is this week to buy the ticket, just buys it. So for example it would be BIL/SIL on Friday, and they’d buy the ticket. If they win they share it out etc. People have been missing their turns to though

Jesus I was already team sharing before reading this but now I defo defo think you should share it. Seeing as you have already decided not to I think you should text your family and scrap the idea of a syndicate altogether!!!! If they had won on their week to buy and didn't share how would you feel??

Nobody gave you money for the lottery tickets but you played anyway out your own pocket.That's your win OP. If it massively will change the lives of your children then spend it on them. You bought the extra line aswel, that's the line that could of won. everything happens for a reason. You need this.

So everyone else involved missed their last turn?

So, when you bought the tickets, did you just buy yours or did you buy everyone's, thinking they would pay at some point? I think, for me, that would be what makes me decide.

IOW--were you buying for the syndicate or just yourself?

If they had won on their week to buy and didn't share how would you feel??

Excited! Because I would’ve paid my £2.50 as usual 😬

Money can cause a lot of division and damage to families.
Be careful

Sorry, I missed the page where you explained it all.
Never mind. You used your own money, it was your own win. When it has been the other's turn, they haven't even bothered to buy any and if they miss paying someone, they don't pay up for past weeks, so it's not a true syndicate.

Hope it’s not too severe when it comes back to bite you. You should end the syndicate now also as you are not someone who should be in one.

I think it’s simple really.

’For the last two weeks, no one bothered paying so no tickets were bought for the syndicate’.

You on the other side, decided to play anyway, with your own money, and won.
Youve been lucky and you keep whatever you won. End of story.

There is absolutely nothing there about being grabby or selfish. You played, they didn’t.

And that is why you are right to keep it! You’ve made the right decision.

Why is that?
What did the OP do that makes her unsuitable to be in that syndicate?

Surely the person who shouldn’t be in one is the person who doesn’t pay their way?!

If people weren’t paying then that should have been discussed and resolved. It doesn’t change the fact that you won this money due to and as part of a syndicate. Therefore you morally should be sharing it as such. I think you just don’t want to share and are finding reasons. Therefore you shouldn’t be in a syndicate where the whole point is it’s shared.

And if you really think you are in the right then you should be able to be open with them about it. Why hide it if you think what you are doing is morally right?

Am I reading this right?

There is no syndicate "pot of money", you each take it in turns to buy the ticket each week?

For the past 2 weeks nobody had bought the ticket.

So it was your week, you bought the ticket. You usually buy 4 lines for the syndicate and did buy 4 lines plus an additional line.

It was a lucky dip that won, not your specific chosen numbers, and a lucky dip that usually gets played for the syndicate.

You would happily share it with your SIL if you didn't have to tell the rest of the family because she has less money than the others?

YABsoU!! 😂😂 But this has prompted me to get a written agreement with my family syndicate. And please for the love of God end that "syndicate" ye have going on!!!!

I think you are making up the rules too late and to suit your agenda. If the syndicate wasn't working you should have ended it officially. You say you bought the same 4 tickets plus 1 extra which just makes it more complicated if you win too be honest by not being transparent. So, if you had lost and everyone paid up I am pretty sure you would have accepted the money and in that situation you would have been happy to be part of a syndicate? You can't just be not in the syndicate as you won. I think you may come to regret your decision. I would share.

@Middleagedandgrumpy if you aren’t paying your go for 2 weeks in a row as a group, and someone then pays, it’s not right to expect that money surely? As the person who won was paying up and you weren’t, so they had 0 chance of winning before because you didn’t buy the ticket for yourself and them?

The more I read, the dodgier it gets, talk about drip feeding. So its a "trust based system". Not surprised you've decided to keep it OP. It seemed obvious that was your plan and that you were wating other equally unethical people to help you justify your decision. Hope karma doesn't bite you in the arse 😉

If there are four people in the syndicate , you take turns to buy, and the last two weeks have been missed… then someone bought a ticket three weeks ago and hasn’t missed a turn?

Because it’s too easy for the people who didn’t pay to then say ‘oh but I meant to pay. I really wanted to play this time’ etc…. It’s just as possible that the other family members are greedy themselves and wouldn’t take NO for an answer when thinking of a few £thousands. There is no reason to think these people will be more ‘morally right’ than the OP or anyone else really.

The syndicate was already dying. Payments were already hit and miss. No one at all paid into the pot for the last two weeks and it’s so low on people’s agenda that no one mentioned it. (Incl wondering if they had won, seeing that they used the lucky dip).
Why would anyone think it’s still going in and they are entitled to money when they haven’t played for the last two weeks (or more)?

It's a family syndicate so yes I would to be honest. If it wasn't working then you really should have called it a day and told people. It is a really harsh lesson I agree but I honestly think it sounds like you would have accepted a late payment if you had lost. Do you disagree?

Why would anyone think it’s still going in and they are entitled to money when they haven’t played for the last two weeks (or more)?

^^ This. There appears to be no precedent of paying past dues. As others have suggested, I would personally message the group saying, no one's paid or played the past 2 weeks, have people lost the appetite or do they still want in? In which case they owe you X for last week.

I think you've got to split it (well 25% to one person) legally.

From my understanding (as the 2 weeks missed)

Player 1: Bought 4 tickets
Player 2: Didn't play (so argue out)
Player 3: Didn't play (so argue out)
You (as player 4): Win 20k.

Player 1 has never missed a payment/turn (as you said 2 weeks were missed). So they are legally entitled to the money as they haven't missed a single payment!

How would you feel in their position (or if player 3 won and you got no share as player 2 hadn't paid)! Rightly and legally you'd have a claim to your 25%.

Legally I think you'd be entitled to 75% but 25% has to go to Player 1 (person who last paid for the 4 numbers) as they're up to date!

Morally though I'd just split it 25% minus the arrears of course.